The Dive for sale after owners decide not to rebuild

The owners of The Dive have recently decided they will not rebuild, following a late July fire that allegedly started in the kitchen, and resulted in a total loss of the floating restaurant.

The fire itself is still under investigation by the state Fire Marshal's Office, and now, the owners are selling the unscathed barge and platform.

“After a lot of thought following the devastating loss of The Dive, we have made the difficult decision that we will not be rebuilding,” reads a Facebook post by owners Betsy Sullivan and Jamie Merriam, on Aug. 10. “The good news is that our commercial barge/hull and two engines were completely untouched by the fire and remain fully intact, giving someone a unique opportunity to create something new on a solid existing platform. This could be an incredible opportunity for someone looking for a large commercial marine platform for a restaurant, entertainment venue, event space, floating business, or an entirely different vision.”

Additionally, the owners are willing to sell The Dive’s entire brand.

“We are also open to discussing the sale of The Dive name, brand and established social media presence with the right person or group who may want to carry the concept forward,” the post reads.

The Dive brand and the barge and platform can be purchased together, or separately.

“This is obviously an emotional decision for us after everything we poured into The Dive over the last 10 years, so we are looking for serious inquiries only,” reads the post. “We would love to see something positive come from what remains.”

While anchored at the Small Coves sandbar in Alton, at 3:39 p.m. on July 25, a fire broke out, believed to have started in the kitchen.

A retired firefighter jumped into action, going aboard the ship to alert the staff and patrons to the fire, after heavy smoke was coming from a kitchen vent.

Nearby boats surrounded the floating restaurant. Fire extinguishers were passed to those aboard to thwart the flames, some swimming to the barge with extinguishers to help.

According to assistant manager McKayla Bond on a fundraising page, rescue efforts were immediate, and focused on guest safety.

“Together — with virtually no time to communicate — we did everything we could in an impossible situation. Thanks to the incredibly fast actions of the employees, along with several courageous guests who stepped in to help, every single person made it off the boat safely. It was the hardest thing any of us have ever had to do on the clock, and every decision we made was centered around protecting the people on board.”

No one was injured in the evacuation.

The clean up was extensive.

To start, state Department of Environmental Services staff responded, to verify booms had been deployed around the vessel to stop pollution and debris from spreading into the water.

After the boat was towed, Murray’s Speciality Services, in Wolfeboro, a company that specializes in marine construction, barge and equipment rentals, earth work and consulting, helped with the tear down and preservation of The Dive.

“The clean up of the Dive was not an easy thing and there are few people setup like I am to make ot [sic] happen. We finished up major clean up yesterday after 3 days of work. We had septic tanks pumped and removed. We hand shoveled all the debris and burnt remnants off the hull,” wrote John Murray, owner of Murray’s Speciality Services, in a Facebook post on July 30. “The owner and volunteers spent 2 days cleaning up the sandbar area.”

The sandbar is now safe for swimming and visiting.

“My company did the main clean up efforts and demo of the dive at no cost to the owners. I have around $20k invested into the clean up. We were also able to get help from other local businesses,” Murray wrote in a Facebook message.

“The investigation of The Dive fire remains active and ongoing,” according to the fire marshal’s office via email, on Thursday. 

An active online fundraising campaign for The Dive has so far raised $10,990, with 96 donors.

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Katlyn Proctor can be reached at katlyn@laconiadailysun.com or by calling 603-524-0150.